Asphalt vs. Concrete: Details on the Great Driveway Debate

What material to use for the driveway is a quandary many homeowners eventually face.

On the one hand, the driveway must get your car from the street to your garage every day, making durability the utmost priority. On the other hand, the driveway takes up a large amount of visual space, so you’ll want a style that contributes — or at least doesn’t detract from — your home’s curb appeal.

There are more than a dozen different materials you can use to pave a driveway, including cobblestone, gravel, and brick. However, most homeowners narrow their options down to a final face off: asphalt vs. concrete.

To help you choose, we’ll compare each aspect of asphalt and concrete. Read on to discover every detail you need to know about these two driveway materials.

A quick (and free) way to check your home value

Get a preliminary home value estimate in as little as two minutes. Our tool uses information from multiple sources to give you a range of value based on current market trends.

Check now

Key characteristics

While asphalt and concrete may both be equally popular choices for driveways, there are a few key differences to note:

Asphalt

Similar to blacktop, asphalt is a mixture of aggregates like gravel and sand, with a binder known as asphalt cement that is usually a thick, liquid form of petroleum called bitumen.

Asphalt tends to have more give and flexibility than concrete, making it easier on the body should you use your driveway to exercise or play sports like basketball. It also offers better shoe grip than concrete.

Concrete

Often used interchangeably with the term “cement,” concrete is primarily made up of three components: water, aggregates like rock, sand, and gravel, and a powdered binding agent called cement.

One big benefit of concrete for driveways is its pale gray color, so it reflects sunlight and stays cooler in summer. Concrete is considered an ideal surface for some ball sports because it provides a harder surface for more ball bounce, and its rigidity won’t warp in the heat the way asphalt can.

Cost to install: Asphalt is more affordable

Should your decision come down to cost, asphalt edges out concrete in the short term as it’s more affordable to purchase and install. However, when considering lifespan and maintenance costs, concrete may be the cheaper option in the long run. We’ll detail these maintenance requirements in a minute.

Asphalt

Asphalt costs between $7 to $13 per square foot, which includes both materials and labor. On average, homeowners spend between $2,934 and $6,565 installing a new asphalt driveway.

Concrete

Concrete costs between $8 to $18 per square foot, with decorative elements such as color and stamping increasing the cost per square foot. Most homeowners spend between $1,800 and $6,000 to install a new concrete driveway.

Installation process: Concrete dries faster

Demolition and removal of your old driveway surface take up the bulk of the installation timeline. Once the space is ready, it takes around the same time for contractors to lay both materials — only drying/curing times differ.

Asphalt

It typically takes installers just one day to lay asphalt. However, installers usually need a prep day in advance of the installation to lay the sub-base, which provides stability and a frost barrier for your asphalt driveway. Asphalt installers typically lay the sub-base on the same day they demolish and remove your existing driveway.

Once the asphalt is down, the material takes 3 to 5 days to cure partially. After that time, it’s safe to drive on your asphalt driveway but not to park on it. It takes an additional 2 to 3 weeks to fully cure.

Concrete

Concrete driveways typically take between 1 to 3 days to complete, depending on the driveway size. For homeowners who want to park on their driveway faster, concrete is the better option. Once the concrete driveway is poured, you typically only need to wait seven days before parking your vehicle on it. However, for heavier vehicles or equipment, you’ll need to wait as long as 30 days.

Lifespan: Concrete lasts longer

When it comes to longevity, concrete definitely has asphalt beat.

Asphalt

Asphalt driveways have a relatively short lifespan of 20 to 30 years.

Concrete

A concrete driveway has an expected lifespan of between 40 to 50 years. This lifespan can be reduced if the driveway isn’t adequately sealed from time to time.

Maintenance: Concrete is lower-maintenance

Neither asphalt nor concrete are “pave it and forget it” driveway materials as both require maintenance over their lifetime. However, overall, concrete requires less maintenance than asphalt.

Asphalt

You should seal asphalt every three to five years or so. Sealant costs between $0.68 to $1.64 per square foot.

In between sealings, keep an eye out for cracks in your asphalt. You can fill minor cracks with an asphalt crack sealer for around $6 per tube. Fail to seal these cracks regularly, and you risk weakening the structural integrity of your asphalt driveway.

Concrete

While you don’t need to seal a concrete driveway, doing so every 5 years or so can extend its lifespan. You can pay a professional to tackle the job for around $1 to $2 per square foot, or you can DIY for $0.50 to $0.75 per square foot.

Just like asphalt, concrete driveways may crack over time, especially in four-season regions with harsh winters. You can fill concrete cracks between a quarter-inch and half-inch wide with concrete crack filler for around $13 per tube.

Aesthetic: Concrete is more versatile

Appearance plays a significant role in the asphalt vs. concrete debate for homeowners concerned with their home’s curb appeal. When you want decorative design options over function, concrete is the clear winner.

Asphalt

Traditional asphalt is black or gray. Recent innovations in asphalt allow for flexible design options, however, the color options available are only of the earth tone variety.

Concrete

There are dozens of design options for concrete driveways because of the number of ways you can color and manipulate this flexible material. If you don’t want the traditional gray style, you can tint or stain your concrete driveway to match or complement the color of your house. You can also add complex designs and patterns to existing concrete if you want to change the style later.

Contractors can stamp patterns and designs into concrete to mimic brick, cobblestone, and complex medallion patterns.

Climate: The best choice depends on where you live

In some regions, the climate, not your personal preference, determines which material works best for your driveway.

Asphalt

Since asphalt is a deep black in color, it absorbs heat, and during the summer, can become sticky and oily. If the material melts enough, you can even track it into the house on your shoes. In areas where summer temperatures stay in the 100s, asphalt driveways are a no-go.

In cold, wet climates, asphalt’s flexibility becomes a liability as it can crack or become destabilized. However, asphalt is more porous than concrete, allowing water to run through it rather than get trapped and freeze, as sometimes happens to concrete.

Concrete

Concrete is the go-to driveway material for steamy southern states, but it can work in colder climates, too, since the material is low maintenance and less prone to cracking than asphalt. However, there are some drawbacks to concrete driveways in colder climates.

Concrete driveways with their interior rebar and wire mesh reinforcements are essentially rigid. When moisture from rain and snow soften the soil underneath concrete, the concrete surface may heave upward. Concrete is also less porous than asphalt, so water can get trapped inside and freeze, causing the concrete to crack.

Renovating? Check your home value first

How much is your home worth today? In as little as two minutes, HomeLight can provide you with a preliminary estimate of value in preparation of your plans to renovate, remodel, or make repairs.

Input Address

Resale value: It’s a tie!

A paved driveway can add $10,000 to $20,000 to your home’s value, especially if you live in areas with extreme weather. When your driveway material choice is between concrete and asphalt, the added value is essentially a draw. Both materials add more value than a gravel or unpaved driveway; however, neither adds more value than the other. Just how much value each material adds depends on the design and finish options you choose to boost curb appeal.

Concrete vs. asphalt: Which one is right for you?

There’s no clear frontrunner when you weigh the benefits and drawbacks of a concrete driveway versus an asphalt driveway.

Asphalt is a great choice for homeowners who care more about function than fashion, want savings in both time and money, and don’t mind regular maintenance. While concrete is the better choice for homeowners looking for a stylish driveway that requires less maintenance over time.

In the end, the right choice for you is the driveway material type that best meets your needs and is compatible with your region’s climate.

What's your home worth today?

Tell us a little bit about your property and get a preliminary estimate of value in as little as two minutes.

Enter Address

Header Image Source: (Artazum / Shutterstock)